The Secret Garden (Classic Starts Series) (Classic Starts Audio Series)

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The Secret Garden (Classic Starts Series) (Classic Starts Audio Series)

by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Lucy Corvino (Illustrator), Martha Hailey (Editor), Arthur Pober (Afterword)

4.08 · rating details · 135,959 ratings · 4,574 reviews

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of its children's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes a dazzling new series: Classic Starts. The stories are abridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats the world's beloved tales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at an incomparable price.

The discovery of a neglected garden t...more

Paperback, 160 pages

Published June 1st 2010 by Sterling (first published 1910)

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Mar 10, 2011

Abigail rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Gardeners / Readers with a Taste for Sentimental Girls' Fiction

Shelves: childrens-fiction, literature-classics

Read the year I was eleven, shortly after Burnett's A Little Princess, The Secret Garden has been one of my "comfort novels" ever since, usually making an annual reappearance sometime in the dark and dreary winter, when the idea of a garden holds particular charm. The story of two cousins - spoiled orphan Mary Lennox, sent to stay at her uncle's estate in Yorkshire, and her invalid cousin Colin - both of whom find healing and love through the "magic" of the Secret Garden, thi...moreRead the year I was eleven, shortly after Burnett's A Little Princess, The Secret Garden has been one of my "comfort novels" ever since, usually making an annual reappearance sometime in the dark and dreary winter, when the idea of a garden holds particular charm. The story of two cousins - spoiled orphan Mary Lennox, sent to stay at her uncle's estate in Yorkshire, and her invalid cousin Colin - both of whom find healing and love through the "magic" of the Secret Garden, this sentimental children's novel is a moving parable of the restorative power of nature...

Stories of this type, in which children learn to "be good," abound in Victorian children's literature, but happily, The Secret Garden is not characterized by the almost obligatory sanctimony of the genre. Perhaps this is because Burnett is an author who understands child psychology, and the reader is able to identify with her characters, even when they are behaving poorly. This gives the book a modern sensibility that may account - in part - for its continued popularity.

However that may be, this is such a satisfying novel, which never seems impossible or unrealistic. I have sometimes felt a little wistful when rereading it as an adult, recalling those days when I lived in a house with gardens. But that is another issue...

Addendum: as is always the case for me, this reread - undertaken for the Children's Fiction Club (part of the Children's Books group here on goodreads) - was entirely satisfactory! I did notice some things, this time around, that eluded me before, like Mary's unfortunate comments about 'blacks' (by which she meant Indians in general, and her own servants specifically) not really being people. I think that Burnett clearly intends to show that this is not acceptable, by pointing out how rude, spoiled and unpleasant Mary is, although the narrator's own comments about the differences between the salt-of-the-earth Yorkshire characters, and the endlessly-salaaming Indian servants, still felt patronizing to me. Not enough to mar the story, but definitely of their time, and something adults might want to address, in discussing this story with children.(less)

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Sep 07, 2007

Todd rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: parents

Shelves: classics

I know this book seems out of place among the fare I usually read, but hey, all I can say is that I like what I like. There is some intangible quality to this book that really strikes a chord in me. The whole idea of that sickly child being healed with love, attention, and (forgive me an LDS joke) wholesome recreational activities, just somehow speaks Truth to me. I think this book has strong application to today's problems with the rising generation. I really believe that kids these days ar...more

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Jun 29, 2008

Alison rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: gardeners; children

I seem to be the only woman I know who didn't read and cherish this book as a child. So I decided to see what all the fuss was about...

It took me a while to get in step with the tone of this book. The beginning was Jane Eyre-lite...Mary is orphaned and sent from India to England to live with her uncle, a stranger to her. The story progresses...and then....Mary's talking to a robin, and he's showing her where buried keys are. At that point, the mood shifted, and I sat back to enjo...more

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Sep 05, 2011

Cheryl in CC NV rated it

· review of another edition

This read was, of course, a re-read. I wore out the copy I had as a child, with its lovely illustrations by Tasha Tudor. What's interesting is what a different, but still marvelous, experience it is, reading it again almost 4 decades later. I didn't remember the beginning bit taking place in India. I could've sworn Mary visited, and brought gifts to, Martha's family's cottage. I didn't remember the ending being so abrupt.

Oddly enough, my 'favorite' bit was learning about how to ...more

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Oct 06, 2009

e.c.h.a rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Momo Ivashkov

Recommended to e.c.h.a by: miaaa

Shelves: children, tak-lekang-dimakan-zaman, fiksi, milik-sendiri, persahabatan, favorites

Apa yang tersembunyi dalam "Taman Rahasia" sehingga bisa membuat Mary dan Collin berubah secara drastis? Benarkah magic? Mungkin itu yang dipikirkan oleh anak-anak seusia Collin dan Mary, anak-anak yang punya dunianya sendiri. Dengan dibantu oleh Dickon, seorang anak berusia 12 tahun yang mencintai alam dan dicintai alam. Yang memberikan pandangan-pandangan lain terhadap Mary & Collin.

Musim semi, musim yang selalu di identikkan dengan kehidupan yang baru, awal mula suatu k...more

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Nov 20, 2008

Jacquelyn Higgins rated it

· review of another edition

Genre: Historical fiction Reading level: Ages 9-12
Want to know the Secret? This book was written almost a century before Byrne and Oprah shared their version. The garden is only the beginning of the story of a brat, orphaned in India, who moves to huge lonely house in Yorkshire, England. It isn’t only the wind that haunts the moors, but the wails of her tyrant cousin. With the help of a local family, the two children learn to heal their bodies and minds with fresh air, exercise, and a ...more

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Dec 19, 2010

Harun Harahap rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: punya, anak-hingga-remaja, fiksi, terjemahan

”Buang jauh-jauh pikiran buruk!”

Kalimat di atas sering kita dengar dan baca, khususnya di buku-buku pengembangan diri. Buku ini yang memuat kisah sederhana tentang persahabatan anak-anak pun menawarkan pesan yang sama. Tapi kisah indah ini lebih mudah untuk diresapi bahkan dinikmati.

Jika pikiran kita selalu disesaki segala hal yang buruk dan negatif, maka awan yang berarak indah di langit pun dilihat sebagai kumpulan awal yang membosankan. Sebaliknya, jika kita terus berp...more

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Jan 14, 2012

Simon rated it

· review of another edition

****SPOILERS****

OK, I must have read and loved this book 40 or so years ago. (Yikes!) I liked it a lot this time round, but it was troubling to me in several ways. It starts off as the story of Mary, a girl suffering from epic neglect. (Her entire household in Colonial India, parents, servants, everyone, die from cholera or flee the house with no-one bothering to think about her, leaving her alone, not knowing what's happening, if anyone is there, scavenging for food from unfinished ...more****SPOILERS****

OK, I must have read and loved this book 40 or so years ago. (Yikes!) I liked it a lot this time round, but it was troubling to me in several ways. It starts off as the story of Mary, a girl suffering from epic neglect. (Her entire household in Colonial India, parents, servants, everyone, die from cholera or flee the house with no-one bothering to think about her, leaving her alone, not knowing what's happening, if anyone is there, scavenging for food from unfinished meals on the table. How's that for a brutal opening of a (children's) novel?) The description of her neglect is so clear and strong that one cannot help but feel that the author must feel some sympathy for her character, but amazingly, she dwells on her unpleasantness to such an extent that one can't be sure she isn't censuring her strongly.

Well, it starts off as Mary's story, and one is prepared for the 'coming alive' she is going to experience, when.... the damn thing gets hijacked by Colin, a little boy at her uncle's house in Yorkshire (where she is sent) who is her male counterpart, his mother dead at or near his birth, shunned by his self-absorbed father, loathed by the army of nurses and doctors over whom he rules tyrannically by virtue of their desire to prevent his tantrums.

Well, it's hijacked by Colin, but it's hijacked again, right at the very end, by Colin's father whose own unpleasantness, though less obvious than Colin's and Mary's, is certainly more culpable in that his began in adulthood and led him simply to forget the existence of his son. But, happily, through Mary's work on Colin, and Colin's own working of what he calls Magic, the paterfamilias and his male heir are finally restored to happiness, Mary entirely forgotten.

And there's Dickon, the young peasant boy who is the symbol of the healing powers of nature. He absolves the function of the Magic Negro here, an oppressed outsider (by virtue of class here, not race) whose wisdom and power is harnessed by, and makes his (and his family's) poverty somehow less awful to, the ruling class. His fate, after the novel, was almost certainly to be killed in the trenches of Flanders, probably as Colin's batman. (Colin's right to order everyone around, Dickon, Mary, the old gardener Ben Weatherstaff, the doctor, is never questioned.)

And the Magic! Obviously there's a lot of good sense in Burnett's views about health and happiness - nature, care for animals and plants, eating well, fresh air and exercise, but there's a new-agey self-help side to it that gets a bit nauseous: repeating over and over to yourself "yes, I can," having one good thought a day, etc. etc.(less)

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Jul 06, 2011

Jason rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Kids lit

Recommended to Jason by: Mama

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. "I'm so happy I could shit." -Chip Sutphin from Serial Mom. That about sums up the feeling I had while reading a lot of this book. And although Beverly Sutphin doesn't like the brown word, I can't think of another phrase that describes it better. This is another feel-good children's book that leaves me in a good mood after I'm done reading it, but it isn't sickeningly sweet (like Pollyanna). It's rather tastefully done.

I've seen three movie adaptations and an off-Broadw...more"I'm so happy I could shit." -Chip Sutphin from Serial Mom. That about sums up the feeling I had while reading a lot of this book. And although Beverly Sutphin doesn't like the brown word, I can't think of another phrase that describes it better. This is another feel-good children's book that leaves me in a good mood after I'm done reading it, but it isn't sickeningly sweet (like Pollyanna). It's rather tastefully done.

I've seen three movie adaptations and an off-Broadway play version, and none of them get it quite right, or at least they took some liberties with the book. I can understand though. There was a lack of tension in the book, and while that can work just fine with literature, it never translates well to a two hour show.

Everyone knows the story: Mary Lennox is a spoiled little 10 year old bitch who lives in India. Her parents die, she moves to England to live with her Uncle who wants nothing to do with her. Neither does Mrs. Medlock the housekeeper or any of the other staff. Bored, Mary pokes around, finds an abandoned hidden garden, meets a boy named Dickon who is good with animals and plants, and together they plant stuff and make it all gardeny again. At night Mary hears crying, and discovers her Uncle's son Colin who is also 10. He's a hypochondriac with authority, he can't walk, throws tantrums, hates everything, etc... Colin and Mary start to hang out, and fight sometimes, and they help each other become better people. Eventually she wheels him out to the Garden which they keep secret from the staff, he gets better, starts to learn to walk, they do chanting voodoo stuff, and eventually his father comes home, sees him walking, everyone does happy crying, and that's the end. I may have left out a few things, but what's the point in telling all; you wouldn't want to read the book, and I highly recommend it.

One thing I liked about the book is one of the last chapters where the point of view is from the Robin that lives in the garden. He doesn't understand the silly stuff that humans do, and comments on it. Nothing spectacular there, just a nice touch.

Some things that surprised me: Mrs. Medlock is nowhere near as mean in the book as she is in every movie version I've seen, but I wouldn't change Maggie Smith's interpretation of her at all. (I'm a Maggie Smith fan). Dickon is much more happy-go-lucky than his Hallmark movie version. The fight between Mary and Colin is nowhere near as dramatic as the 1949 version of the movie where they're throwing tables and chairs, and anything else they can get their hands on, all over the room. In fact, the tantrum scene is rather dull in the book. Colin is brought up short quick, and we find some other things that make sense. The nurse/doctor/staff members/etc didn't know of Colin's private fears that he was going to turn into a hunchback like his father; he kept that and some other things to himself. In the movies everyone knows that he thinks this, and they indulge him no matter how stupid it is. This adds an element of internal fear for the character, and I can buy that much better than the alternative. Another nice touch.

The play contains a couple of very weird mumbo jumbo voodoo chanting scenes, and I just thought it was broadway being all frou-frou the way they get sometimes, but it turns out that that kind of thing is in the book too. Who knew? It wasn't as weird in the book as it was in the play, but I'm glad to know that scene had a basis from which to draw and wasn't just made up for the sake of making it up.

This book made me want to get back out into the garden, and grow things, but it's hot and humid where I live, so fuck that. Perhaps if it had been a five star book I'd feel more inclined to go play in the dirt, but alas, I'm giving it only four (which is still a very good rating).(less)

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Jan 08, 2011

Kelly rated it

· review of another edition

Mistress Mary, your looks are quite contrary....

There is very little that I recall of this novel, as it has been years since I have last laid fingers on this popular tale. But what I do remember of it...

Mary is a bratty, sour-spirited child who is shipped back to England when her ever-delinquent parents die in cruel India. There she is kept under the wing of a likewise inconsiderate uncle, in his gothic castle, wherein she grows deathly bored inside, and he...more

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Jun 16, 2010

Kaion rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: seen-adapt, cont-historical, feminism, favorites, reread

Rereading childhood favorites, you always run the risk corrupting that memory with adult judgment- but it's usually worth that risk for the flip-side... I hadn't read The Secret Garden in years, and it still simply doesn't disappoint.

On this rereading, I was really struck by the fact that it functions well as a wonderfully inverted subversive Sleeping Beauty* tale. The prince is a sickly-looking, cross girl who well earns her 'Mistress Mary Quite Contrary' . And the princess is a tan...more

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Aug 16, 2008

Michele rated it

· review of another edition

When my youngest daughter saw me reading this, she scoffed, "You haven't read that? I've read it AND seen the movie!" Guess I'm falling behind! When I first considered reading this (on the syllabus of a course I'm auditing) I seriously considered just not reading it and skipping the class when it would be discussed (ah! the beauties of auditing!). But I'm glad I didn't.

There's a lot of stuff going on in this text that I ended up finding fascinating. For one thing, it led me t...moreWhen my youngest daughter saw me reading this, she scoffed, "You haven't read that? I've read it AND seen the movie!" Guess I'm falling behind! When I first considered reading this (on the syllabus of a course I'm auditing) I seriously considered just not reading it and skipping the class when it would be discussed (ah! the beauties of auditing!). But I'm glad I didn't.

There's a lot of stuff going on in this text that I ended up finding fascinating. For one thing, it led me to investigate some children's lit theory, which is something new for me. But it also employs these children and their garden in ways that allow for subtle critique and commentary on the construction of Englishness and the endless contradistinction between the rural and urban (or urbane in this case).

One of the things I've learnt (and yes, it may seem self-evident, but I never really thought of it before) by reading about kids lit is that most children's literature is non-experimental, both in its form and its ideas (most). In other words, if an idea/moral/value pops up in a children's book, then it is probably fairly mainstream. There are children's books that are written with an agenda or polemic that don't fall into this kind of category, but these books are usually all about whatever it is that they're trying to make a point about: blended families, diversity, changing definitions of family, identity politics (teens) etc. When an idea pops up in a children's book that isn't ostensibly about that idea, then you can be pretty sure it's mainstream.

For example, in this novel, there is a distinct connection made between the 'unhealthy' atmosphere of India, and the 'healthy' climate on the English countryside. It's a given. Also, (and slightly disturbing) is the emphasis on the novel on the boy, Colin, at the end. The novel begins with Mary's story, but once she has become healthy enough to find both the secret garden and Colin (and tell Colin about the garden), she fades into the background, her role is complete. Says a lot about patriarchal assumptions of mastery and place from what I can see.

But it's also a fun little book of kids being kids, playing around with each other and discovering life. And of course it has a strong 'useless adult' fantasy in which the kids constantly out think and out manouevre the adults in the book (who I suspect really aren't quite as dumb as they're made out to be).(less)

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May 12, 2008

Amy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: gothic, classic, childrens, made-into-a-movie, everyone-loves-except-for-me, 2008-books-read

I guess I didn't miss much by not reading this book as a child. I don't really understand why it became a classic. It starts out interestingly enough with a very gothic setting. A little British girl named Mary survives a cholera epidemic in India and is sent to Yorkshire to live with her distant relatives. The author gives a vivid description of the beauty of the moors and the mysterious mansion that the girl goes to live in. The only other interesting part is really when Mary discovers the boy...more

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Apr 23, 2008

Cati rated it

· review of another edition

English 425 Submitter’s name _Cati Howard
Book Bank Book Bank subject: _my favorite book___

Reference information:
Title The Secret Garden
Author Frances Hodgson Burnett
Publisher J.B. Linppincott Company Year 1911
# of pages 256 Genre drama
Reading level 4.5 Interest level 9-12 years old
Potential hot lava:
None to speak of except that there are references to death throughout the story. Children who have issues dealing with morta...more

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Mar 04, 2008

Rebecca Burch rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everyone, especially young girls.

Recommended to Rebecca by: my Mom

Shelves: favorites

This is my favorite book, ever! My Mom made me read it as a kid, and I really didn't want to. I put it off and put it off, and finally decided to just suck it up and read it. I think it took 10 pages for me to get completely hooked.

I think I loved the book so much because it was all about bringing about life and growth through love. All the main characters are sort of "forgotten" in some way or another, and they go on this adventure when Mary finds a key to a secret, wa...more

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Apr 24, 2008

Yulia rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: mini-me

Silly me, I looked through all the editions to find the one I grew up with, but had no luck. But this is what I wrote about it a few months ago:

In the third grade, I would have been hopelessly overwhelmed by my reading assignments had my father not offered to help by reading aloud every other chapter to me and having me read him the rest. We did this in the bedroom, as my mother openly complained how he made a travesty of the English language, with his Russian accent and his puttin...more

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Nov 08, 2009

May rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: children (but if adults would want to read it too, I don't think there would be any problem)

Shelves: literature-for-children-classic

My second classic (if I remember correctly, my first was "The Odyssey," but sadly, I can't remember the ISBN of THE book 'coz I read it when I was in Grade 3 - or was it 4? Too bad, though, 'coz I really would want to have a copy of that particular book and go through it again *sighs*). Anyway, back to the Secret Garden, I'll tell you a little "secret": I was REALLY digging for Dickon and Mary. Dickon is more sensible than Colin. More fun, too. I mean, he can tame animals, ri...more

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Sep 14, 2007

Briynne rated it

· review of another edition

I was looking through Sarah Gransee's books and happened across this one. I loved this book as a child! It was one of the books I had from my mother's childhood collection, including others like The Little Princess, Alice in Wonderland, and the tales of Arabian Nights. I have such fond memories of this book, and remember very distinctly wishing for my own hidden garden. I love books like this, where I hardly remember the plot, but I remember the feel of reading the book like it was last mont...more

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Jan 15, 2009

Jeanne rated it

· review of another edition

I read this book about every five years or so. For me it captures the sense of secrecey that hides much more than a garden...the inner workings of a child's mind, that adults have no clue about! I am also reminded that the same is true for many adults, myself included. After reading this book, I always feel a renewed sense of commitment to getting to know poeple beyond the public surface and letting more people see the real me.

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Dec 12, 2007

Gabrielle added it · review of another edition

I love this book. This is probably the first time I realized that I could go away, find a place to hide in, and make my own. I guess this is how I found my passion.

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Jun 27, 2011

Sherri rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: children_ya, personal-classics

Mary Lennox appeared in my life some time in elementary school, my most memorable encounter with a main character who wasn't the usual sweet, nice, pretty girl spreading sunshine and rainbows where ever she went. I liked her right off. Her search for acceptance and family resonated with me.

Of course, as the novel progresses, Mary begins her transformation into that sweet, nice girl who can be loved by others and she fades into the background as Colin takes center stage. That littl...more

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Jan 04, 2008

rinabeana rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: book-club

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I reread this book for a book club and it was such a wonderful trip down memory lane. I don't think I've read it since I was a child, but I could never forget the story. I love that Burnett told the story in such a matter-of-fact way. I found it interesting that she didn't seem to take a stance on how the children acted. When she described Mary's thoughts and actions (especially at the beginning), she simply stated that Mary behaved so because she hadn't been taught to behave otherwise. Getting...more

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May 24, 2009

Mai rated it

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Recommends it for: those in search of hope, everybody

Shelves: own, children-s-book, classics, coming-of-age, literary-fiction, historical-fiction, revenge-justice-vengence

I've had this book on my bookshelf for months. I don't know why I got the urge to read The Secret Garden. Perhaps it was the row of badly written paranormal books I've been trying to read lately, or the approach of summer. Either way, I'm glad I did.

I can remember trying to read this book years ago, after finishing Burnett's A Little Princess (which I loved), and having a hard time getting through it. Now that I'm older, and have spent some time gardening, the message and appeal of ...more

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Dec 05, 2007

Josephine rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: kidlit

This was one of my favorite books as a child, and I still love it. I love that Mary & Colin blossom as the garden blossoms, and that when they focus their energies on helping something else to grow, they begin to grow too. It's really a beautiful story.

Reading it again as an adult, it was a little hard to get past some of the eurocentric notions (the pure, healthy English air essentially "cures" Mary of her Indian-ness) and there's a bit of law-of-attraction rhetoric ala "...more

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Apr 15, 2008

Anneke Dubash rated it

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My favorite children's book... Probably... I have many favorites, loved for many different reasons.

This was one of the first books I can remember my mother reading to me and I have read it many, many times since. I'm not sure if my love of gardens and gardening comes from the book or my love of the former ensures the appeal of the latter.

The idea of a place lost and unkempt being found, kept all to one's self, explored and nurtured until it is beautiful again has such res...more

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Aug 17, 2007

Ngoc rated it

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Shelves: classics, childrens-youngadult, favorites

Secret Garden is one of my absolute favorite books ever. I don't even know how to describe my love of this book. Maybe because I am a bit contrary (Mary, Mary, quite contrary).

I love imaginating all of the scenes in the story: the vast moors, the lonely house, the lifeless gardens. I don't think I could relate to Mary because I didn't have a lonely childhood: I had friends and sisters and a loving family, but I did very much identify with her. Maybe I loved imagining being in that b...more

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Jan 05, 2012

Alan Phelps rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

This book was there for me during a time in my life that was less than satisfactory. Therefore, I am endebted to it, and feel that a rating of anything less than a five would be ungrateful. Read it if you want to feel a little joy in the darkness, the faerie whisper that everything is going to be alright. Only a fool follows fairies whole-heatedly, though, so be on the lookout that while you're being drawn into the spell woven through Burnett's language it is your sorrow, and not your soul that ...more

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Jan 23, 2009

Denisat. is currently reading it · review of another edition

that if you try maybe hard or look harder youll find something interesting. mary a main character find a boy in a room locked up and hes sick but his dad wont come and see him but now he wants mary to come n see him its a interesting book if u love classics or sort of mysteries u should read it and find out more....

NOW Mary and her friends made the secret garden alive again. MARY made colin get out in the freash air and now he can see alot of things he used to be in his room f...more

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Mar 23, 2008

Kristen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics, young-adult, own

I can't remember how many times I've read this book. I've loved it for years. Book, movie, musical - all of 'em. Although, if I remember correctly, I saw the musical first.

Like most books that you read multiple times, I always notice something different or new in each reading. In this one, it was the sense of joy that I had when Colin first discovered Spring. And how he spoke of the Magic that pushes seeds up through the dirt, I felt that elation and understanding, and I'm not sure I...more

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Jun 23, 2009

Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: childrens, classics, favorite-books, own, best-characters-ever

This is one of my favorite childhood books ever!!! When I was little, we lived in this area of Fort Worth where our backyards opened up to this park, and it wasn't really a garden but I always thought of myself as Mary Lennox walking around (haha I definitely had her attitude!). Not only is this one of the most wonderful childrens books ever, it's a truly timeless classic: the best stories are the ones that are applicable to every generation.
The story is also the basis for one of the grea...more

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Question	34	225	Jan 24, 2012 10:26am
Classics for Begi...: * The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett	32	114	Jan 22, 2012 12:41pm
CM Book Club: The Secret Garden	6	2	Oct 12, 2011 10:29pm
How does your garden grow?	2	64	Jun 30, 2011 07:27pm
children	15	90	Jun 23, 2011 04:46am
Children's Books: March 2011 - The Secret Garden	91	47	Apr 19, 2011 10:40am
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About Frances Hodgson Burnett

Frances Eliza Hodgson was the daughter of ironmonger Edwin Hodgson, who died three years after her birth, and his wife Eliza Boond. She was educated at The Select Seminary for Young Ladies and Gentleman until the age of fifteen, at which point the family ironmongery, then being run by her mother, failed, and the family emigrated to Knoxville, Tennessee. Here Hodgson began to write, in order to sup...more

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Books by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Secret Garden, Little Princess, Little Lord Fauntleroy: Three Complete Novels

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Quotes from Der geheime Garten. Ei...

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.” — 180 people liked it

“One of the strange things about living in the world is that it is only now and then one is quite sure one is going to live forever and ever and ever. One knows it sometimes when one gets up at the tender solemn dawn-time and goes out and stands out and throws one's head far back and looks up and up and watches the pale sky slowly changing and flushing and marvelous unknown things happening until the East almost makes one cry out and one's heart stands still at the strange unchanging majesty of the rising of the sun--which has been happening every morning for thousands and thousands and thousands of years. One knows it then for a moment or so. And one knows it sometimes when one stands by oneself in a wood at sunset and the mysterious deep gold stillness slanting through and under the branches seems to be saying slowly again and again something one cannot quite hear, however much one tries. Then sometimes the immense quiet of the dark blue at night with the millions of stars waiting and watching makes one sure; and sometimes a sound of far-off music makes it true; and sometimes a look in someone's eyes.” — 82 people liked it

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The Secret Garden (Classic Starts Series) (Classic Starts Audio Series)

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